Car top ski rack

ABSTRACT

Opposite ends of a lower rack bar are supported in gutters of a car top by feet inserted in the gutters. Each foot is secured in place by a clamping cover having a flange engaged beneath the gutter and slid into clamping engagement with the gutter by a screw between the leg and cover and having a head above the lower rack bar. An upper rack bar can be locked to the lower rack bar in a position covering the clamping screwhead to prevent access to it.

United States Patent 3,239,l l5 3/1966 Bott et al. 224/42.1 F FOREIGN PATENTS 394,839 12/1965 Switzerland 224/421 F Primary Examiner Robert G. Sheridan Assistant Examiner-Robert J. Spar Attorney-Robert W. Beach ABSTRACT: Opposite ends of a lower rack bar are supported in gutters of a car top by feet inserted in the gutters. Each foot is secured in place by a clamping cover having a flange engaged beneath the gutter and slid into clamping engagement with the gutter by a screw between the leg and cover and having a head above the lower rack bar. An upper rack bar can be locked to the lower rack bar in a position covering the clamping screwhead to prevent access to it.

PATENTEI] AUG24 I971 SHEET 1 BF 2 INVENTOR. DONALD J GJESD/WL BY Wm ML CAR TOP SKI RACK To prevent unauthorized persons from removing skis from a ski rack on a car top, it has been customary to lock together the upper and lower bars of such racks in closed position. In addition, to prevent such persons from removing the ski rack itself, locking mechanism has been provided not only to retain the skis in the ski rack but also to hold the ski rack on. the car top. Such locking structures are comparatively bulky and expensive.

It is a principal object of the present invention to provide a simple and compact locking arrangement which will perform the function both of locking skis in a ski rack and of preventing removal of the ski rack from the car top, which locking mechanism actually is independent of the ski rack mounting mechanism. I

In addition, it is an object to provide a very effective and easily operated clamping mechanism for securing a ski rack to the gutter of a car top.

A further object is to secure a ski rack to a car top effectively by mechanism which will not be accessible for disengagement of the rack from the car top when the rack bars are locked in closed condition.

FIG. 1 is a side elevation ofa ski rack mounted on a car top by the use of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation of an end portion of such a ski rack on an enlarged scale with parts broken away and FIG. 3 is an end elevation of the ski rack.

FIG. 4 is a top perspective of an end portion of the ski rack on a further enlarged scale and having parts broken away.

FIG. 5 is an exploded top perspective of the end portion of the ski rack shown in FIG. 4.

In FIGS. 1 and 2 the ski rack of the present invention is shown mounted on a car top 1 by being clamped to the gutters 2 extending along opposite sides of the car top. Such ski rack includes a lower rack bar 3 carrying a supporting leg 4 rigidly secured to its outer end. Preferably such rack bar includes a portion of channel shape receiving within it a complcmental channel portion 5 on the upper end of leg 4 which is secured be fitted into the rack bar grooves 22 either by sliding the strip to the rack bar by rivets 6. A long and narrow foot 7 on the lower end of the leg engages in the gutter groove to support the ski rack. v

To secure the foot 7 in the groove of gutter 2 a channelshaped cover 8 having a bottom flange 9 is fitted over the leg 4 and pulled upward to draw the flange tightly against the bottom of the gutter and clamp the gutter between the foot and cover flange. For thus moving the cover a tilting nut 10 is fitted between the flanges 11 of the cover and mounted by trunnion pins 12 extending through such flanges into the opposite ends of the nut. A bolt 13 extends through a washer 14, a hole 15 in the lower rack bar 3 and a hole 15 in the web of the leg channel 5, and then screws into the threaded aperture 16 of the tilting nut. Turning of such bolt will exert a lifting force on the nut as the washer l4 bears against the web of the leg-mounting channel 5. This upward force acting through the journals l2 draws the cover 8 upward to pull flange 9 tightly against the underside ofthe gutter 2.

The tilting nut 10 and bearing of the washer 14 on the rack bar will not prevent the cover channel 8 from swinging or even from beingdisplaced transversely of the leg 4. To maintain the cover in a position embracing the leg while permitting movement of the cover lengthwise of such leg, a guide pin 17 extending through the cover is connected to the side flanges 18 of the leg 4 by extending through slots 19 in such flanges, as shown best in FIGS. 2 and 5.

While the lower rack bar 3 could be of various shapes, it is preferably an asymetrical H-bar having a web 20 nearer the upper edges than the lower edges of its flanges and having upper oppositely extending edge flanges 21 forming oppositely opening grooves 22 between such flanges and the web. A ski-supporting cushion strip 23 made of resilient rubber of plastic material has oppositely projecting flanges 24 which can lengthwise of the rack bar or by buckling the strip sufficiently so that the strip flanges can be inserted between'the edge flanges 21 of the rack bar. The skis can rest on the edges of ribs 25 located closer together than the edges of flanges 21.

The upper rack bar 26 may be an asynietrical H-bar section like the lower rack bar 3. The inner end of this bar is supported from a post 27 by a pivot 28. Such post is secured stationarily to the lower rack bar 3 and projects upward from it as shown in FIG. 1. A resilient ski-clamping strip 29 of rubber or plastic material has oppositely opening grooves 30 in which the lower flanges 31 of the upper rack bar 26 can engage. As the upper rack bar is swung about its pivot 28 toward the lower rack bar the cushion strip 29 will be pressed against skis lodged between the rack bars to hold them firmly in place in the rack.

The upper rack bar 26 is held in closed position adjacent to the lower rack bar 3 by a closing and retaining .arm 32 which is swingably mounted on the end portion of the upper rack bar 26 by pivot pins 33. Such retaining arm is of channel cross section and its web has in it an aperture 34 which'can be passed over a latch tongue 35 on the outer end of the leg-mounting channel 5 as shown in FIG. 4. The arm 32 can be drawn downward and swung toward the lower rack bar 3 by grasping the outwardly projecting flange 36 on the lower end of such arm.

When the aperture 34 has been passed over the lip 35 such lip can be secured in such aperture by turning of the lock. When the lock is turned the eccentric projection 40 will be rotated down to engage the upper side of the web of legmounting channel 5 which will prevent the retaining arm 32 from being lowered sufficiently to place its aperture 34 in registry with lip 35.

The ski rack includes two ski-clamping sections in tandem, as shown in FIG. I, which are connected by a bridge 41. When the length of the composite ski rack has been adjusted so that the feet 7 of the two sections will fit into the gutters 2 on opposite sides of the particular car top 1, the clamping screws 42 can be tightened to secure the bridge in place. Next, the bolt 13 at the outer end of each rack section tightened while the upper rack bar 26 of such section is in its raised position as shown at the right of FIG. 1.

When the cover flanges 9 have been secured tightly against the bottoms of the gutters 2 the sections of the rack cannot be removed without unscrewing the screws 13 at least slightly even though the wing nuts 42 are loosened. Access to the heads of the screws 13 for the purpose of unscrewing them is prevented when the upper rack bars 26 are in their closed positions, the retaining arms 32 are in engagement with the latch tongues 35 and the eccentrics 40 of locks 37 are turned to hold the retaining arms in such locked and latched relationship.

I claim:

1. In a car top ski rack securable to car top gutters, a lower rack bar, a cooperating upper rack bar in overlying registry with said lower rack bar, means guiding said upper rack bar for movement relative to said lower rack bar between an upper open position and a lower closed position, gutterclamping means carried by said lower rack bar and clampingly engageable with a car top gutter, clamp-actuating means for said gutter-clamping means located between said lower rack bar and said upper rack bar and including a screw connected to said gutter-clamping means, extending through said lower rack bar and having a head on its upper end located adjacent to the outer end of said lower rack bar and accessible from above said lower rack bar, and locking means for retaining said upper rack bar in closed position relative to said lower rack bar and restricting access to said clamp-actuating means including a retaining arm of channel cross section disposable, when said upper rack bar is in closed position, with its flanges overlapping the portion of the space between said upper rack bar and said lower rack bar in which the head of said screwis located.

2. ln a car top ski rack securable to car top gutters, a lower rack bar, a cooperating upper rack bar in overlying registry with said lower rack bar, means guiding said upper rack bar for movement relative to said lower rack bar between an upper open position and a lower closed position, gutterclamping means including a leg carried by said lower rack bar, a foot on the lower end of said leg engageable with the upper side of a car top gutter, a cover disposed alongside said leg having its upper end disposed adjacent to said lower rack bar and having a flange engageable with the lower side of such gutter and guide means engaged between said leg and said cover and guiding said leg and said cover for relative movement of said foot and said flange toward and away from gutterclamping relationship, clamp-actuating means for said gutterclamping means located between said lower rack bar and said upper rack bar and including a screw connected to said cover, extending through said lower rack bar and having a head on its upper end accessible from above said lower rack bar, and locking means for retaining said upper rack bar in closed position relative to said lower rack bar and restricting access to said clamp-actuating means.

3. In the ski rack defined in claim 2, the cover being of channel-shaped cross section, a tilting nut threaded on the screw end received between the flanges of the cover, and trunnions mounting said nut on the cover flanges for tilting of the .nut relative to the cover. 

1. In a car top ski rack securable to car top gutters, a lower rack bar, a cooperating upper rack bar in overlying registry With said lower rack bar, means guiding said upper rack bar for movement relative to said lower rack bar between an upper open position and a lower closed position, gutter-clamping means carried by said lower rack bar and clampingly engageable with a car top gutter, clamp-actuating means for said gutter-clamping means located between said lower rack bar and said upper rack bar and including a screw connected to said gutter-clamping means, extending through said lower rack bar and having a head on its upper end located adjacent to the outer end of said lower rack bar and accessible from above said lower rack bar, and locking means for retaining said upper rack bar in closed position relative to said lower rack bar and restricting access to said clamp-actuating means including a retaining arm of channel cross section disposable, when said upper rack bar is in closed position, with its flanges overlapping the portion of the space between said upper rack bar and said lower rack bar in which the head of said screw is located.
 2. In a car top ski rack securable to car top gutters, a lower rack bar, a cooperating upper rack bar in overlying registry with said lower rack bar, means guiding said upper rack bar for movement relative to said lower rack bar between an upper open position and a lower closed position, gutter-clamping means including a leg carried by said lower rack bar, a foot on the lower end of said leg engageable with the upper side of a car top gutter, a cover disposed alongside said leg having its upper end disposed adjacent to said lower rack bar and having a flange engageable with the lower side of such gutter and guide means engaged between said leg and said cover and guiding said leg and said cover for relative movement of said foot and said flange toward and away from gutter-clamping relationship, clamp-actuating means for said gutter-clamping means located between said lower rack bar and said upper rack bar and including a screw connected to said cover, extending through said lower rack bar and having a head on its upper end accessible from above said lower rack bar, and locking means for retaining said upper rack bar in closed position relative to said lower rack bar and restricting access to said clamp-actuating means.
 3. In the ski rack defined in claim 2, the cover being of channel-shaped cross section, a tilting nut threaded on the screw end received between the flanges of the cover, and trunnions mounting said nut on the cover flanges for tilting of the nut relative to the cover. 